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Ash Ketchum
Ash Ketchum (Japanese: サトシ Satoshi) is the protragonist or main character of the Pokémon anime. He is also the main character of various manga based on the anime, including The Electric Tale of Pikachu, Ash & Pikachu, and Pocket Monsters Diamond & Pearl. He is a Pokémon Trainer from Pallet Town whose goal is to become a Pokémon Master. He shares his Japanese name with the creator of the Pokémon franchise, Satoshi Tajiri. His English surname is a pun of the English motto, "Gotta catch 'em all!." In the anime History At some point in his early life, Ash went on a field trip in a rainy forest and got lost. Scared to the point of tears, he was forced to hide in a hollow tree trunk. A group of local Pokémon joined him and cheered him up, which was partially what motivated him to become a Pokémon Trainer. Ash also enrolled in Professor Oak's Pokémon Summer Camp when he was young. One day, another camper named Serena got lost in the forest and wounded her leg after getting startled by a Poliwag. Ash, who was looking for the Poliwag, came to her rescue and wrapped a handkerchief around the wounded knee to brace it. He then helped her up and guided her out of the forest. At some point before starting their journeys, Ash was friends with Gary Oak until they both fished out a Poké Ball on both their lines. After arguing about who would keep it, they broke it in two, each keeping one half as a reminder of that day. The Beginning Series Years later, Ash began his Pokémon journey at the age of 10 as a warm-hearted and well-intentioned but stubborn, rash, and amateur Pokémon Trainer. He was forced to accept a stubborn Pikachu from Professor Oak as his starter Pokémon because he woke up late on the day he was set to get his first Pokémon. He was determined to achieve his goal and when Pikachu saw that he was willing to compromise his own safety to keep it safe, the two of them formed an extremely strong bond that has been noticed and remarked upon by many characters in the anime. This unbreakable friendship would set his course for the future. From that point, Ash still had a lot to learn about becoming a Trainer. The first Pokémon he caught was caught by luck, as he knew absolutely nothing about battling, and he was hesitant to admit when he was wrong. His journey was made even more complicated due to the presence of Jessie, James and Meowth of Team Rocket, who, after witnessing Pikachu's power, made it their primary objective to steal Pikachu for their boss, Giovanni. Ash did not go on this journey alone; as soon after he left Pallet Town, he met Misty, who followed him on the pretense that he owed her a bike (which Ash 'borrowed' to save Pikachu, and which the Electric Mouse destroyed whilst protecting Ash). Ash then met Brock, the Pewter Gym Leader, whom he fought and lost to. In his rematch, Ash nearly defeated Brock, but refused to give the final blow due to the intervention of Brock's younger siblings. Touched by Ash's kindness to Pokémon and with the return of his estranged father, Flint, Brock decided to go with Ash and pursue his dream of being the world's best Pokémon Breeder. Shortly afterwards, Ash reached the Cerulean Gym and was shocked to learn that Misty was one of its Gym Leaders. After Ash earned his Cascade Badge, he continued his journey with Misty, who dreamt to be the world's greatest Water Pokémon Master. Many of Ash's first Gym Badges were given to him merely out of gratitude for his assistance, rather than claiming an actual victory in battle over the Gym Leaders. Of his first five Gym battles, only his victory over Lt. Surge was an actual victory. Every time he thought he was doing well, he would somehow cross paths with his childhood rival, Gary Oak. Gary always reminded Ash that he was always a step behind. By the time Ash had caught his seventh Pokémon, Gary had caught more than forty. Ash's troubles were not made any easier when his Charizard grew too powerful and refused to listen to him until Ash could prove himself to him. Over time, Ash's dedication to his goal paid off. After earning his first eight Badges, Ash went on to compete in the Indigo Plateau Conference, advancing to the fifth round - one further than Gary - and ending up in the Top 16. The Sun Series Following Ash's defeat in the Indigo League, Professor Oak asked him to travel to Valencia Island in the Orange Archipelago to retrieve the GS Ball from a Pokémon Professor named Ivy. While in the Orange Archipelago, Ash learned of the Orange Crew, an elite group of Trainers not unlike Gym Leaders, that provided challenges for Trainers to overcome in the Orange League. After Brock decided to stay with Professor Ivy and help her with her work, Ash and Misty were joined by an enthusiastic Pokémon watcher named Tracey Sketchit. Ash, Misty, and Tracey traversed the Orange Islands on the back of a lost Lapras. Ash caught the Lapras during this time. He eventually defeated the four members of the Orange Crew and finally won the Orange League by triumphing over the Orange Crew Supreme Gym Leader, Drake. Before leaving the Orange Archipelago, Ash managed to find his Lapras's pod and released it back into the wild. Upon returning to Pallet Town, Ash discovered that Brock had returned due to some unknown incident that left the aspiring Pokémon Breeder in dread of even hearing Professor Ivy's name. Meanwhile, Tracey stayed at Professor Oak's laboratory as Professor Oak's assistant, and Brock rejoined Ash and Misty. After his victory in the Orange League, Ash encountered Gary again, and after being defeated in a one-on-one battle, he learned that his rival had been training hard in order to participate in the Silver Conference in Johto. The Master Training Series Excited at the prospect of meeting new Pokémon and facing Gary again, Ash and friends left for the Johto region to collect eight Badges from the Gym Leaders in the Johto region and compete in the Johto Pokémon League. Much like his travels through Kanto, Ash, Misty, and Brock impacted the many people and Pokémon they met along the way (one of them being Kurt, to whom Ash delivered the GS Ball). In the middle of his travels, they visited the Whirl Islands, and, along with Ritchie, helped save Silver, a child Lugia, and its parent, from the evil machinations of Team Rocket. Ash, along with Misty, competed in the Whirl Cup, with Ash placing in the Top 8. He was defeated by Misty in a 3-on-3; Misty ended up losing in the next round. Ash encountered Gary occasionally in Johto, and, while they were still rivals, Gary seemed to view Ash with slightly more respect than before. Ash's growth of character was evident throughout this story arc as he continued to think more and more about his Pokémon and less and less about himself. After earning eight Johto Gym Badges, Ash entered the Silver Conference with Gary. Finally, the two rivals battled in the tournament in a Full Battle. Although it was a close battle, Ash emerged victorious against his rival for the first time in his career as a Pokémon Trainer, marking one of the biggest turning points in said career. After the battle, Gary and Ash departed on good terms with each other, finally overcoming their boyhood animosity and recognizing each other as equals. Ash's journey through Kanto and Johto came to an end when he was forced to split up with Brock and Misty when the two of them received messages to return home. Advanced Generation series After hearing about a distant region called Hoenn from Harrison, the opponent he lost to in the Silver Conference, Ash decided to journey there and take only Pikachu with him this time. In Hoenn, Ash met a girl named May and her brother, Max, who he later learned were Norman's (the Petalburg City Gym Leader) children, and both of whom decided to join Ash on his travels. Shortly after the three companions left Petalburg City, Brock rejoined the group when he saved them from a flock of angry Taillow and their leader. From that point onward, Ash journeyed through Hoenn with one old friend and two new friends, collecting Gym Badges in much the same fashion as before. Once May set her sights on becoming a Top Coordinator, Ash supported her whenever he could while maintaining his focus on winning Badges. During these journeys, Ash and his friends ended up being entwined in the plots of the region's two rivaling villainous teams, Team Aqua and Team Magma, with Pikachu actually getting possessed by Groudon in the summit of their conflict. Thanks to Team Rocket's (unintentional) help, they helped save the entire Hoenn region. While Ash had no major recurring rival in Hoenn, he did encounter certain Trainers multiple times and formed friendly rivalries with them. One such friend was Morrison, who was very similar to and just as competitive as Ash and was first introduced close to the end of the group's travels in Hoenn. Just like the Indigo Plateau and Silver Conferences, Ash did not win the Ever Grande Conference, but he came very close before losing to Tyson, who went on to win the tournament. After parting ways with May, Max, and Brock, Ash returned to Pallet Town. As he passed through Viridian City on his way back home, he met Scott and Agatha and learned about the Battle Frontier in Kanto. He decided to take on the Battle Frontier and was surprised but happy to learn that Brock, May, and Max would join him on this adventure as well. Eventually, Ash conquered the seven Frontier Brains and was offered the opportunity to become a Frontier Brain himself, but declined in favor of continuing his Pokémon journey. Diamond & Pearl series Ash arriving in Sinnoh Following Ash's victory over the Battle Frontier, May set her sights on Pokémon Contests in the Johto region and traveled there while Max returned home to Petalburg City in Hoenn. After encountering and battling his old rival, Gary (who has now become a Pokémon researcher), and learning of a new region with new Pokémon, Ash decided to leave for the Sinnoh region to earn the Gym Badges available there. Like before, he took only Pikachu with him at first, but brought his Aipom along when she snuck onto the ship Ash was leaving on. While Brock did not accompany Ash to Sinnoh, he did travel with him through Sinnoh like he had for Kanto, Johto, and Hoenn. This time, they were accompanied by another aspiring Pokémon Coordinator named Dawn. Ash enthusiastically supported Dawn in her endeavors to become a Top Coordinator. It's kind of like he did with May, but he actually watched all of Dawn's Contests unlike May's where in some cases he would train instead. Just as he supports Dawn in her Contests, she supported him in his Gym battles. She would even go as far as dressing up as a cheerleader with her Pokémon sometimes and cheer for him. Ash in the Wallace Cup While traveling through Sinnoh, Ash formed a heated rivalry with a Trainer named Paul. Throughout Ash's journey, Paul would constantly put him down and the two often argued over their nearly opposite training styles. While Paul was harsh, distant, and sometimes plain cruel to his Pokémon, Ash insisted that the best way to raise Pokémon was through patience, caring, and friendship. Their rivalry came to a head after they competed in a Tag Battle Tournament together, when Paul released his Chimchar after it failed to meet his expectations. Ash then decided to take in the Chimp Pokémon and promised to make it strong using his own philosophy. Although Ash always considered himself on par with him Paul often bested him in battles as his own Pokémon were very powerful (He only kept Pokémon that were naturally very strong). Ash's Pokémon, while strong in their own right, were not yet equals. This came to a devastating defeat at Lake Acuity for Ash, losing a Full Battle while only knocking out two of Paul's Pokémon. Ash recognised that he had to take Paul more seriously and cautiously in future. Ash in the Hearthome Collection While in Sinnoh, Ash competed in two Pokémon Contests - once in Jubilife Cityand a second time in the Wallace Cup upon Wallace's recommendation. He also competed against several Pokémon Stylists in the Hearthome Collection fashion show in Arriving in Style!, where he ended up in third place, winning the Unique Award for his original performance. As Ash and his friends journeyed through Sinnoh, they ended up becoming heavily involved with legends of Sinnoh, with Ash being personally chosen by Azelf of the Lake guardians. Along with Cynthia, Looker and Team Rocket, they faced off against Pokémon Hunter J as well as the evil Team Galactic. Thanks to their efforts, the Sinnoh region was spared from Cyrus's insane scheme. Ash eventually obtained all of the Sinnoh Gym Badges he needed to enter Sinnoh's Pokémon League Conference. During his battles in the Lily of the Valley Conference, he managed to advance to the Top 4. For the second time since meeting Paul (the first being in a PokéRinger tournament during which Ash's Staravia evolved into a Staraptor and defeated Paul's Honchkrow), Ash managed to defeat his bitter rival, using Infernape (who had evolved from the Chimchar Paul abandoned) to deal the finishing blow. This confirmed Ash's beliefs in how to raise Pokémon, showing that though he took his time and raised his Pokémon with care and friendship they achieved the same results as Paul's methods. This caused Paul to finally acknowledge Ash as a Trainer of some merit, thus ending their arguments. Ash later fought against Tobias, becoming the only known Trainer to defeat his Darkrai. Although Ash ultimately lost the battle, he was not overly upset as he was closer to his Pokémon than ever before. At the conclusion of the Diamond & Pearl series, Ash, Dawn, and Brock split up and went their separate ways, with Brock confirming that he would not be joining Ash on his travels to Unova as he decided to pursue his new dream of being a Pokémon doctor. Best Wishes series In the Best Wishes series, Ash traveled with Professor Oak and Delia Ketchum on a trip to the Unova region. After losing in a battle to Trip and seeing the power of the Legendary Pokémon Zekrom, Ash became interested in traveling Unova to meet new Pokémon, as well as new friends. In Unova, he brought along only his Pikachu as he did in Hoenn. Soon after he started his journey, Ash met Iris, a wild girl who is (as he later learns) a possible successor of the Opelucid City Gym and wishes to be a Dragon Master, and Cilan, one of the Striaton Gym Leaders, who aspires to be the world's greatest Pokémon Connoisseur. After Ash earns their interest by telling Iris of his encounter with Zekrom, and battling Cilan for the Trio Badge, the three decide to travel together. During his time in Unova, along with his quest for the Badges, the three friends also competed in the local competitions Club Battle, Clubsplosion, and Pokémon World Tournament Junior Cup. Despite battling quite well, Ash failed to win any of the tournaments and managed to be the runner-up of two of the three. Despite these mishaps, he was not upset to see his friends win the competitions instead of him. As they journeyed, Ash and friends ended up again being caught up in Team Rocket's new plot, which was personally being supervised by Giovanni. This time, Team Rocket planned to take over the world using a Meloetta that Ash befriended to unleash the power of the Forces of Nature. Thanks to Cynthia and Ridley, Ash and his friends managed to thwart Team Rocket's evil plot. After managing to obtain eight Unova Gym Badges, Ash was allowed to participate in the Vertress Conference along with his current and some new rivals. In the preliminary round, Ash battled Trip one-on-one, defeating him for the first time and ending their rivalry. Ash also defeated his friend and rival, Stephan, in the tournament. He then battled one of his newer rivals, Cameron, where he lost in A Unova League Evolution!, ending in the Top 8 of the Vertress Conference. After the Conference, the three friends decided to check out some ruins that Professor Juniper's father, Cedric Juniper discovered, and on the way, they met with a strange young man named N. They soon became entwined in the plots of Ghetsis, Colress, and Team Plasma as they sought to take over the world using Reshiram's power. Ash and his friends, along with Looker, the Team Rocket trio, Professor Cedric, as well as N, Anthea and Concordia, managed to foil Plasma's evil scheme. As their adventures started coming to a close, Ash and his friends decided to take the long way back to Kanto by sailing on a series of luxury liners through a chain of islands called the Decolore Islands. On the way, Ash met Alexa, a Pokémon Journalist, from whom he learnt of the Kalos region. Soon after they reach Kanto, Ash split up with Iris and Cilan, who wished to go in separate directions to follow their own dreams. XY series Ash as a Baron at the Battle Chateau In the XY series, Ash traveled to the Kalos region with Alexa, first visiting Lumiose City in Kalos, Where Dreams and Adventures Begin!, where he parted ways with the journalist and tried to challenge the Lumiose Gym at Prism Tower. He was forcibly ejected from the tower when the computerized security system, later revealed to be the Clembot, found out that he didn't have any Kalos Badges. He was rescued by Clemont and Bonnie, who started to travel with him after he calmed down a rampaging Garchomp at the top of Prism Tower with the assistance of a brave Froakie. After the incident was resolved, the Froakie allowed itself to be captured by Ash. In Battling on Thin Ice!, Ash won his first Kalos Badge, the Bug Badge, after defeating the Santalune Gym Leader, Viola. The group was joined by Serena, who still remembered Ash rescuing her in her childhood and decided to start her own journey to reunite with him, although he initially did not remember the two of them meeting. Ash and Serena learn that Clemont was actually the Lumiose Gym Leader, who was exiled from his own Gym by his own invention. They help Clemont face Clembot, and after the issue was resolved, the two boys promised to battle after Ash fulfilled the original conditions set by Clembot (even if it was no longer necessary), to earn four Badges. With that, the group set off on their journey again. During their travels, they occasionally met the ninja boy Sanpei, whose presence always led to a progress in Froakie's (and later Frogadier's and Greninja's) strength. The four Trainers later attended Professor Sycamore's Pokémon Summer Camp, where they met the trio of Shauna, Tierno, and Trevor, with whom the group started a friendly rivalry with. In Ash's case, his rivalry would mainly be with Trevor and Tierno as Serena and Shauna pursued Pokémon Showcases. As they traveled, the group started to learn the secrets of Mega Evolution after meeting Professor Sycamore, Diantha, and Gurkinn, as well as briefly traveling with Korrina. During their journey, Ash caught a lost and traumatized Goomy, which he raised into a Sliggoo, and later, a powerful Goodra. After earning his fourth Gym Badge, Ash eventually faced Clemont in their promised Gym Battle, and won with Goodra's help, gaining his fifth Badge. Later, Ash and friends come across Goodra's old home, where they discovered it was taken over by a Florges and her companions. After saving Goodra's swamp from Team Rocket while simultaneously solving the issue concerning Florges, Ash left Goodra in the wetlands so it could act as the protector of its swamp and the Pokémon living in it. Sometime afterwards, when Ash reached Laverre City to challenge the Gym, he made a new rival in Sawyer, a novice trainer hailing from Hoenn. Along the way, Ash would also support Serena in her quest to become Kalos Queen, and gave her some helpful advice when she eventually lost, telling her that losing is simply another step towards victory. Later in their journeys, Ash and friends reached Anistar City and, together with Professor Sycamore, they met the Psychic Gym Leader, Olympia. She revealed his Frogadier's past as a Froakie from before meeting Ash and a glimpse of Frogadier's, his friend's, Sycamore's, Team Rocket's, and his own fate, indicating that they would all play a vital role in Kalos's future. Ash challenged her to a Double Battle, which he won using Frogadier and Talonflame. Shortly after, the group came across a mysterious Pokémon, dubbed Squishy by Bonnie, who was being pursued relentlessly by the villainous organization, Team Flare, prompting the group to put it under their own protective custody. Some time afterwards, Ash and his friends got involved in a conflict in Sanpei's home town, which led to Frogadier evolving into Greninja, as well as achieving Bond Phenomenon for the first time. During another confrontation with Team Flare in Terminus Cave, Ash learned Bond Phenomenon came at a cost, as he was able to share Greninja's senses, but also share its pain. Later on, Ash met up with Alain, who became intrigued by Greninja's Bond Phenomenon and requested to battle Ash. Ash put up a decent fight, but eventually lost. After his loss against Alain, Ash and Greninja began training to perfect Greninja's new form. Ash and Greninja later had a rematch with Alain and a battle against Diantha, during the latter Greninja even managed to reach its final Ash-Greninja form. Despite their training, the two were unsuccessful to master the transformation as Ash passed out during both battles from exhaustion from using the form. After losing a rematch with Sawyer, in which Greninja even failed to transform, Ash began feeling doubtful of his ability to master the transformation. His confidence was shaken further after brutally losing to Wulfric, the Snowbelle Gym Leader. After seeing how badly Greninja got hurt during their battle and blaming himself for the loss, a depressed Ash left into the Winding Woods by himself. After an argument with Serena, Ash was able to get back to his old self. He later met up with Greninja, and while trying to save a wild Spewpa, the two were able to perfect Bond Phenomenon. With Greninja's Ash-Greninja form perfected, Ash was able to defeat Wulfric in a rematch, earning him his final Kalos Gym Badge and qualifying him for participation in the Lumiose Conference. After returning to Lumiose City, Ash entered the Lumiose Conference. Following several notable victories, Ash had Goodra rejoin his team for his semi-final battle against Sawyer. After a narrow victory in, Ash managed to defeat Sawyer and reach the finals of the Conference, marking his first appearance in the finals of a Pokémon League; where he would face Alain. On the night before the final battle, he and his friends learned more about the Ash-Greninja transformation. In the finals of the Lumiose Conference, Ash and Alain started a back and forth battle that eventually came down to Alain's Mega Charizard X against Ash's Greninja in its Ash-Greninja form. After a fierce battle, Greninja was defeated, causing Ash to end up as the Runner-Up of the Lumiose Conference. Ash showed great sincerity and principle following the battle, shaking Alain's hand regardless of the result. Ash and his Pokémon captured by Team Flare During the closing ceremony of the conference, Team Flare began their final operation, using the power of the blue Zygarde Core Z2 to cause massive roots to destroy parts of Lumiose City. Ash and his Pokémon were ultimately abducted by Team Flare and were taken captive at the top of Prism Tower, as Lysandre intended to use Ash and Greninja's Bond Phenomenon for his plans using Team Flare's Mega Evolution energy ray to control them. After talking some sense into Alain, Ash resisted the machine's influence and broke free using Bond Phenomenon. Ash and Alain soon engaged in a battle against Lysandre, and ultimately managed to defeat him. When Ash later heard about the Giant Rock, he met up with the rest to combat it. Thanks to everyone's combined effort, Chespie was saved from the Giant Rock. Squishy and Z2 ultimately destroyed the creature, before the two Zygarde left. Following the crisis, Ash helped Alain and Serena resolve their issues and bade farewell to his rivals. Later, after dropping Goodra off at the wetlands again, the group came across Xerosic, one of Team Flare's Scientists. Ash, his Greninja, and his friends and the gang were ultimately able to foil Xerosic's plans and hand him over to Officer Jenny. The group soon reunited with Squishy and Z2, who requested Greninja's help to obliterate remaining negative energy left by Team Flare's crisis. Knowing this was for the sake of Kalos, Ash bade farewell to Greninja, before Greninja left with the two Zygarde. After releasing Greninja, Ash and the gang headed back to Lumiose City to say their final goodbyes. After bidding farewell to Serena, who headed for Hoenn, Ash separated from Clemont and Bonnie as well, and returned to Pallet Town. Sun & Moon series In the Sun & Moon series, Ash traveled with Delia to the Alola region after Mimey won the trip via lottery. It was shown that Ash gave his Kalos Pokémon to Professor Oak, who gave him and his mother a Pokémon Egg to deliver to his cousin Samson. While on Melemele Island, Ash stumbled upon the Pokémon School, where he met Lana, Lillie, Mallow, Kiawe, Sophocles, Samson, and Professor Kukui and learned about Z-Rings and Z-Moves. Later on, he met Tapu Koko, the guardian of Melemele Island, who gave Ash a Z-Ring and an Electrium Z. With these discoveries, Ash decided to remain in Alola to study at the school and learn more about Z-Moves, living with Professor Kukui and accompanied by the Rotom Pokédex. Ash caught several Pokémon on Melemele Island, such as his Rowlet, Lycanroc, and Litten. Ash's first attempt at using the Electrium Z broke the Z-Crystal, prompting him to take on the island challenge to obtain new ones and prove his worth. After his first grand trial, against Hala, he was intended to receive a Fightinium Z, but Tapu Koko switched it for a second Electrium Z. He later gained a Normalium Z, a Grassium Z, and a Rockium Z by participating in trials and grand trials on Melemele and Akala Island islands. Ash also struck up a friendly rivalry with Lillie's brother, Gladion, and engaged in numerous school and afterschool activities with his friends. In Alola, Kanto!, Ash and his classmates traveled to Kanto for an extracurricular activity. This allowed Ash to reunite with Brock, Misty, and some of his Pokémon living at Professor Oak's Laboratory. In When Regions Collide!, they paid a visit to the Cerulean Gym, where he and Pikachu had a battle against Misty and used Gigavolt Havoc to defeat her Mega Gyarados. In SM044, Ash was entrusted to take care of a Cosmog by Solgaleo and Lunala, which he saw in a dream. The Cosmog, nicknamed Nebby, by Lillie, took a liking to Ash and frequently caused trouble with its ability to teleport people around. In SM047, Nebby teleported Ash to Ten Carat Hill, where Ash encountered Gladion again. There, he learned that Lillie's fear of touching was caused by a Nihilego Faba accidentally summoned from an Ultra Wormhole. In SM049, after an accident with Nebby caused Lillie's fear of touching Pokémon to resurface, Ash and Lillie traveled to Aether Paradise in order to find out how Lillie's trauma originated. Worried that Lillie regaining her memories could put him in trouble, Faba attempted to erase Lillie's memories again. Faba was defeated by Gladion's Type: Null, after it evolved into Silvally. Seeing Silvally allowed Lillie to remember how her fear of touching Pokémon began and overcome it, thus regaining the ability to touch all types of Pokémon. In SM050, Faba kidnapped Nebby while Ash's attention was elsewhere. When Ash and Lillie learn about this, they enlisted Gladion and Lusamine in helping them rescue it. When the four find Faba, they find he successfully forced Nebby to summon a Nihlego from an Ultra Wormhole. Nihilego proceeded to knock Faba away, forcing the others to battle it. Nihilego proved to be too powerful, forcing Lusamine to push Gladion out of the way to prevent him from getting captured by it; as a result, she was caught instead, allowing Nihilego to easily drag her into the Ultra Wormhole. Afterwards, Ash discovered that the incident caused Nebby to evolve into a Cosmoem. In SM051, Ash and his classmates followed Lillie and Gladion to the Altar of the Sunne in order to assist in rescuing Lusamine. In the next episode, Ash, his classmates, and Gladion watched as the Guardian deities helped Nebby evolve into the Legendary Pokémon Solgaleo and upgrade Ash's Z-Ring into a Z-Power Ring. With a Solganium Z he received from Nebby, Ash activated Solgaleo's Z-move, Searing Sunraze Smash, and had Nebby open up an Ultra Wormhole, allowing everyone to traverse through Ultra Space on Nebby's back. In SM053, Ash, his classmates, Gladion, and Nebby arrived at the Ultra Deep Sea, where they confronted Lusamine, who had been forcibly fused with Nihilego. Lusamine, reduced to a childlike state as a result of the fusion, claimed the Ultra Beasts as her own possessions and fled in order to prevent the group from taking them away from her. As the group chased Lusamine down, more and more of their members were forced to stay behind in order to fight off Lusamine's Pokémon. In SM054, while Lillie managed to get through to her mother with a speech, the Nihilego refused to let go. After Ash's Electrium Z temporarily transformed into a Pikashunium Z, Ash and Pikachu used it to launch a 10,000,000 Volt Thunderbolt. Though the attack successfully defeated Nihilego and frees Lusamine from its control, the Pikashunium Z immediately reverted to an Electrium Z. With their mission finished, Ash and everyone took Lusamine back to the Altar of the Sunne. In SM055, Nebby disappeared, leaving Ash feeling sorry for not able to thank it for its help. Later, Ash discovered that Professor Kukui and Professor Burnet had decided to get married. After learning they weren't planning to have a wedding, Ash and his classmates arranged a surprise wedding ceremony, with Ash acting as the ring bearer. During the reception, Lusamine, Wicke and Faba approached Ash and his friends, with Faba apologizing for his earlier actions. The three then invited Ash and his classmates to join an Ultra Beast response unit called the Ultra Guardians, which they all agreed to. By the end of the ceremony, Ash saw Nebby flying through the sky and thanked it before Nebby disappeared. Character Young Ash Ash is an only child who lived with his mother, Delia, until he left for his Pokémon journey at the age of ten. His main goal in life, as described in the first episode, is to be the world's greatest Pokémon Master. One particular characteristic about Ash that has not changed over the course of the series, aside from his determination and his passion for raising and training Pokémon, is that he is incredibly selfless. He will often go to extraordinary lengths to earn a Pokémon's trust and respect, and to better understand a Pokémon that he sees as troubled. He is also very fair-minded and trusting, a true testament to his good-natured character.